Ole Gunnar Solskjaer praises Jack Grealish but plays down Manchester United transfer talk
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has refused to confirm whether Manchester United will attempt to sign Aston Villa captain Jack Grealish next summer.
Grealish has enjoyed an excellent start to the season for his boyhood club, scoring three goals and providing four assists in 12 appearances since the start of the 2019/20 campaign.
He was the standout player in Sunday's 2-2 draw at Old Trafford, scoring a superb opening goal as Villa avoided defeat at Old Trafford for the first time since 2009.
Grealish's performance intensified reports that he could move to Manchester in the next few months.
Solskjaer has altered United's recruitment strategy since being handed the managerial reins on a full-time basis in March.
The Norwegian acquired Harry Maguire, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Daniel James in the summer, demonstrating a preference for younger, hungry British players.
Grealish would fit that policy and has shown this season that he has the quality to thrive in the Premier League after three campaigns in the Championship.
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And Solskjaer praised the attacking midfielder after Sunday's clash, although he refused to respond to speculation linking Grealish with the Red Devils.
"I can’t talk too much about other teams’ players if they are Man United calibre or targets," he told reporters.
"But fantastic goal. I think he has hit one of those corners that I have hit a couple of times. It was a great finish but then again we should defend better and show him down the left.
"But what a goal and he played a good game, definitely."
United's failure to beat Villa means they have won just four of their 14 Premier League encounters this term.
Solskjaer's side are eight points adrift of the top four and just six above the bottom three as they prepare to take on Jose Mourinho's Tottenham on Wednesday.
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Greg Lea is a freelance football journalist who's filled in wherever FourFourTwo needs him since 2014. He became a Crystal Palace fan after watching a 1-0 loss to Port Vale in 1998, and once got on the scoresheet in a primary school game against Wilfried Zaha's Whitehorse Manor (an own goal in an 8-0 defeat).